Negotiate – It’s a right!

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Thursday April 16 2009

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Bike messengers and car couriers protested outside Courrier Rapide on March 26th with a clear message to their employer: Une convention collective, ça presse! CUPW received a bargaining unit certificate on June 21, 2007 yet there’s still no signed collective agreement. Courrier Rapide management refuses to bargain in good faith. CUPW is now trying some more creative means to force Courrier Rapide to negotiate, including this demonstration outside their office. There’s more to come if they won’t budge!

More on bargaining

Speaking of couriers bargaining in Montreal, bike messengers and car couriers at Courrier Com and LDJV Courrier Plus have voted on a program of demands for their second rounds of bargaining. Their demands include guaranteed standby pay, a wage increase of 2.25%, paid leave, a role in determining company pricing, and radio fees to be paid by the company.

Members of the bargaining committee will be meeting with employer representatives in the coming months.

Both collective agreements expired April 8, 2009.

Consulting on pensions

This may be a long way down the road for many CUPW members but it’s important to give some thought to finances and retirement. On this note, CUPW has been pushing the federal government to do its part in ensuring you have enough money to retire.

CUPW submitted a brief to the National Consultation on Private Pensions that the federal government held in March. The brief argued that there is an urgent need for increased benefits in the Old Age Security (OAS) and the Canada/Quebec Pension Plan (C/QPP). CUPW’s position is that increasing the OAS is better because it is not restricted to employees or self-employed workers who file taxes and make contributions.

Here’s the status of various groups of private sector workers related to pensions:

Workers who process international parcels at Canada Post facilities

These workers are not members of the Canada Post Pension Plan but are eligible for employer contributions to the C/QPP

Combined Urban Service (CUS) and Highway Service (HS) drivers

Some workers employed by companies with Canada Post contracts are deemed to be employees with employer-paid C/QPP while others are deemed to be contractors

CUS/HS contractors with a contract directly with Canada Post are not members of the Canada Post Pension Plan and are not eligible for employer contributions to the C/QPP

Bike messenger and car courier sector

Employers in this sector routinely avoid their legal responsibilities to contribute to the C/QPP by informing workers that they are independent contractors, rather than employees.

The brief also notes that many workers are misclassified as independent contractors, rather than employees or dependent contractors.

Furthermore, many do not earn enough money to file income tax returns and consequently do not make their “self-employed” contribution to the C/QPP.

More workers covered at Dynamex in Saskatoon

The union has signed up additional workers at Dynamex Saskatoon who work as Customer Service Representatives and Dispatchers.

We have submitted an application to the labour board asking that the bargaining unit be changed to include these workers.